Construction of MoS2 hybrid membranes on ceramic hollow fibers for efficient dehydration of isopropanol solution via pervaporation

Due to environmental issues and intense competition in the marketplace, industries and governmental organizations invest in new technology research to improve productivity, environmental protection, and cost-efficiency. Pervaporation is a membrane-based separation technology, which is cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and efficient in the separation of azeotropic mixtures. Here, we report the fabrication of a hybrid membrane based on molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ) material, which can be used to dehydrate alcohol through a pervaporation process. Ceramic hollow fiber (CHF) membrane was used as a substrate in MoS 2 hybrid membrane, and TiO 2 intermediate layer was constructed to reduce the macropores on the CHF surface. Polyethyleneimine (PEI) was used as a binder in the fabrication of the MoS 2 layer. MoS 2 -PEI layer was prepared by vacuum suction method and then crosslinked with trimesoyl chloride (TMC) to prevent the hybrid layer from swelling in an aqueous solution. We investigated the morphology and physicochemical characteristics of the hybrid membranes by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and water contact angle (WCA) measurements. The fabricated MoS 2 hybrid membrane possesses a permeation flux of 5697 g m -2 h −1 and separation factor of 320 in a 90 wt% isopropanol aqueous solution at 343 K. In this study, we provide a comprehensive understanding of the fabrication of MoS 2 hybrid membrane on the CHF membrane for efficient dehydration of isopropanol via the pervaporation process.